Thread: Seattle: Police arrest 21 at immigration-protest rally

Police arrest 21 at immigration-protest rally

By Jill Kimball

Seattle Times staff reporter


After blocking an intersection for more than three hours, 21 demonstrators were arrested Wednesday evening at a downtown Seattle rally to urge an overhaul of the nation's immigration laws.

The group stood in a circle holding hands at the intersection of Madison Street and Second Avenue, near the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building, until, one by one, each was willingly carried off by Seattle Police officers. Police arrested them on suspicion of failure to respond to a lawful order and pedestrian interference.

Among the protesters were members of groups in the Washington Immigration Reform Coalition, including OneAmerica Executive Director Pramila Jayapal. As they were arrested, they continued to sing choruses of "This Little Light of Mine," "America the Beautiful" and "This Land is Your Land."

The Coalition rallied and blocked the street in the same place on May 20, but that day nobody managed to cause enough mayhem to get arrested. This time, the Coalition seemed determined to stay in the middle of the street until police forced them out.

Seattle Police spokeswoman Renee Witt said the coalition sent police a clear message: "They want to be arrested, and they'll stay here all night if they're not."

Participants set up camp tents in the intersection, hung laundry on clotheslines and sat in solidarity even as passers-by shouted curse words and angry drivers honked.

Pat Craig, who was riding on a Metro bus down Second Avenue just as the rally moved into the street, was angry the protesters were holding up traffic and got off the bus to see the commotion.

"It's a good message they're sending, but they're going about it the wrong way," Craig said. "People who support immigration reform might be turned off to it now."

The demonstrators said their walk into the street got the attention of local residents, and that was their objective.

"The point was to undertake civil disobedience to draw attention to the moral crisis" of the nation's immigration system, Jayapal said.

"We want people to understand that this is an important issue," she said.

OneAmerica spokesman Charlie McAteer said immigration overhaul was not at the forefront of the country's mind as it should be, in part because of the recent oil spill fouling the Gulf of Mexico. McAteer and the rest of the coalition decided to take advantage of a heavy traffic day downtown — thanks to the Mariners home game — to hammer home the message that the issue ought to get more attention.

Before demonstrators took to the street, a group of about 200 gathered in the plaza in front of the Jackson Federal Building to hear state House Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, D-South Seattle, Rep. Adam Smith, D-Kent, and other community members speak about the importance of immigration overhaul.

At about 3:30 p.m., the entire group moved into the intersection and began chanting, singing and setting up camp.

Within the hour, police managed to redirect cars and buses to other streets, closing off several blocks to traffic. Police asked everyone to clear the intersection at about 5:30 p.m., and all but the 21 people standing in a circle complied.

Many schoolchildren and recent high-school graduates joined the crowd to show their support for immigration overhaul during the rally.

Recent Chief Sealth High School graduate Carlos Padilla wore his cap and gown "to represent undocumented kids who graduated from high school" whom he believes deserve citizenship and more recognition for their accomplishments.

"I've been here since I was 2 years old, so I feel like a citizen," Padilla said. And because he has earned enough scholarship money to pay for one year at the University of Washington, "I think I deserve it."

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com

Good - maybe they woke a few people up to the idiocy of it.

"I've been here since I was 2 years old, so I feel like a citizen," Padilla said.

And I feel like a pink pony - doesn't make me one.

Wonder how many folks from CANADA they got?

Friday, June 25, 2010
Last updated 6:02 p.m. PT
Immigration protesters charged for blocking streets
Eight have pleaded not guilty, others arraigned Saturday

By CASEY MCNERTHNEY
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

The Seattle city attorney has filed pedestrian interference charges against 21 of the 22 protesters arrested for blocking streets during a Wednesday afternoon immigration reform protest in Seattle.

The case against the remaining suspect, a 17-year-old boy, has been referred to the King County Prosecutor's Office and a charging decision is expected by early next week, spokesman Dan Donohoe said.

Protesters -- a crowd of at least 150, according to the City Attorney's Office -- gathered near 2nd Avenue and Madison Street shortly after noon wearing white "immigration reform now" T-shirts.

The protest blocked an intersection near the Federal Building and caused downtown traffic problems for hours.

Of the 21 adults charged in Seattle Municipal Court, eight have pleaded not guilty.

Those eight are Pramila Jayapal, 44; Sarah Beth Monroe, 27; David Kelly Parsons, 34; Yasmin Christopher, 26; Dominique D. Vijarro, 37; Maria Carmen Miranda, 58; Steve Robert Williamson, 53 and Martin Meraz, 34.

Their attorney, Terrence Costello, did not immediately return a call for comment. Their next court appearance is a pretrial hearing Saturday afternoon. The cases of the adults arrested are being consolidated, according to the City Attorney's Office.

"We demand immigration reform, and we feel it is such an issue of moral crisis, moral urgency that we are ready to risk arrest ourselves," Jayapal, a member of immigrations rights group One America, told KOMO/4 the day of the protest.

The other 13 people charged with pedestrian interference are Diane Narasaki, 58; Jennifer Leigh Chan, 25; Edwin Covington, 73; Toby Marshal Guevin, 28; Jeffrey Edward Sells, 64; Miguel Amado Maestas, 43; Jeffrey George Johnson, 58; Ashley Marie Haugen, 29; Howard Clark Greenwich, 43; Jason Demetri Covington, 42; Mary Le Nguyen, 30; Betsy Mae Dillner, 26; and Daniel Gerard Ford, 57.

They're scheduled to be arraigned Saturday.

Pedestrian interference, the same Seattle law that prohibits aggressive begging, is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 90 days in jail and maximum $1,000.

The announcement of the pedestrian interference charges came the same day Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer was criticized for saying the motivation of "a lot" of the illegal immigrants is to enter the United States to look for work, but that drug rings press them into duty as drug "mules."

On April 23, Brewer signed a state immigration enforcement law scheduled to take effect July 29 unless blocked by a court. Five legal challenges already are pending in federal court, and the U.S. Justice Department may file its own challenge.

The Arizona law requires police officers enforcing another law to question a person's immigration status if there's a reasonable suspicion that the person is in the country illegally.

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/422397_p ... ource=mypi

Originally Posted by ReggieMay

"I've been here since I was 2 years old, so I feel like a citizen," Padilla said.

And I feel like a pink pony - doesn't make me one.

Yeah, I feel like a Dr. Pepper now and then, but don't make me a Pepper either.

Anyone remember the woman after the March 2006 Mexico flag waving demonstrations, followed by the first annual May 1, 2006 boycott to shut down America & in Mexico the no gringo day?

This hispanic woman said that all of Mexico was entitled to their "civil rights" in America, because when the slave ships stopped in America, after dropping off the African slaves, that the ships then continued to Mexico where family members of the blacks were sold in Mexico.

Anyone remember Mexico having slaves? NO!

She was embarrassing, I think she wrote a book, and the others on the show laughed at her.

It's like they have no conscience or thought about their soul's survival.